Ansari Hosein, the Caribbean Agricultural Research and Development Institute (CARDI) Country Representative for Barbados, delivering remarks.
THE demand for coconut products is growing strong, but Ansari Hosein, the Caribbean Agricultural Research and Development Institute (CARDI) Country Representative for Barbados, warns that as that demand increases, so do the challenges associated with coconut production.
He made the comments while delivering opening remarks at the start of a coconut growers stakeholder meeting, held yesterday at the Samuel Jackman Prescod Polytechnic. It is one of the efforts being made to help chart a path forward for the local coconut industry as part of the Coconut Industry Development for the Caribbean Project, which is being funded by the European Union and executed by CARDI.
“Some of the challenges include the high cost of inputs and labour, an ageing population, a limited coconut gene pool, several pests and diseases, lack of quality planting material, inadequate coconut usage and development, antiquated infrastructure, poor agronomic practice, fragmented industry organisational structure and lack of an integrated approach for transforming the industry at the regional and national levels,” he said.
Hosein said that to combat those challenges, there is a need for policy intervention and broad-based stakeholder engagement as well as investment from the public and private sectors. With that in mind, he said the project being undertaken in Barbados to advance the industry is aimed at building the local coconut industry, using the private sector stakeholders to drive the process, while the Government and institutions such as CARDI would provide support to assist the development, as has been done in several other countries.
He made the point while speaking to the current status of the local coconut industry. According to him, research shows that there are over 60 coconut water vendors selling the commodity on the roadway and there are a number of people who are interested in planting coconuts on a commercial scale. Moreover, he said several businesses are already using coconut in their products.
However, he said, one of the key needs of the industry is high yielding planting material. Given that, he said the Ministry of Agriculture is evaluating local germplasm and are also looking at overseas sources for the germplasm as well.
His comments came as he outlined that some of the issues stakeholders have identified are also a challenge for the industry, including rats, a lack of climbing technology, nursery development and product development. In respect of the latter, he said assistance is being sought from other institutions such as the Barbados Investment and Development Corporation and the Barbados Agricultural Development and Marketing Corporation.
Hosein revealed that some of the activities planned to help develop the industry include the establishment of six observation trials and germplasm banks of local high yielding varieties, in order to provide planting materials to farmers; training in nursery management and coconut production; and assistance to vendors and processors to enhance their operations. The CARDI official added that plans are on stream to develop a national stakeholder committee to lead the development of the industry and to conduct a value chain analysis of the industry.
Additionally, he said consideration is being given to importing new dwarf varieties from Brazil and other countries. (JRT)